By Kevin Meyer
Yesterday I came across a video created by McDonald's in the UK that attempts to demonstrate the value of being a McDonald's employee - and refute some of the criticism. I've been pondering it for several hours and still conclude it's a good thing - even if we all wish there were more manufacturing jobs making real things instead of service jobs making us fat.
Some of the good points:
- McDonald's is making a bit of a gutsy move to admit that although their jobs really are "just" flipping burgers, they are still solid jobs in a difficult economy.
- I'm sure the underlying meaning was to improve the company's reputation, but in doing so they are also supporting and promoting the value of their employees.
- You'll notice the defined feedback and training (and train-the-trainer) programs create progression and promotion opportunities.
- You may also notice a couple situations where mistakes were made - but the intent was to learn from the mistake to improve the process, not pound on the person.
- Note how McDonald's differentiates their training and promotion opportunities from other low wage jobs.
It's eight minutes long and potentially a tear-jerker by the time you get to the end. Think about your own employees as you watch it - especially those that do the jobs that most of us would not want to do. Do you overtly support them the same way, and let them know they are critical and valuable to your process?